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2026 MLB Draft Preview: Liam Peterson scouting report.

The 2026 is about a month away — the first round kicks off on July 11, 2026 — so its time to start offering capsule looks at players the Texas Rangers could select with their top picks. The Rangers’ first round pick is at #16, their second round pick is at #54, and their third round pick is at #89.

Leading up to draft day, we will be doing writeups of some of the players who could end up getting selected by the Rangers with one of their first three picks. Today we are looking at University of Florida righthander Liam Peterson.

Liam Peterson is a 6’5”, 225 lb. righthanded pitcher for the University of Florida who turns 21 later this month. Peterson attended high school at Calvary Christian in Clearwater, Florida, and was a consensus top 100 guy for the 2023 MLB Draft, but was not selected due to signability issues. He has been a starter for the Gators all three years he’s been there.

Peterson is considered, if not having the best stuff in this draft class, to be near the top. Baseball America did an extensive write-up on him in October, profiling him as potentially the top pitcher in the draft class. His fastball sits in the mid-90s, and can reportedly get up to 98-99 mph. He throws both a slider and a curveball, with the slider being his primary out pitch. Peterson also has a changeup that is relatively advanced, and the changeup can be a weapon against lefties.

The knock on Peterson is his command, with Keith Law, for example, noting that he gets hit too hard for the type of stuff he has, and Fangraphs noting that Florida has had a history of not developing their pitchers as well as they should. The October write-up from BA says that he has a quality fastball, but not one that he can just blow batters away with, saying that Peterson “will be reliant on command to avoid damage.”

As a freshman, Peterson had a 6.43 ERA in 63 innings over 16 starts and two relief appearances, striking out 77 of 301 batters while walking 44 and giving up 15 homers. He took a step forward in 2025, lowering his ERA to 4.28 in 69.1 innings over 15 starts and a relief appearances, increasing his K total to 96 (out of 305 batters) while lowering his walks to 32 and reducing his homer count to 9.

In 2026, Peterson put up a 4.59 ERA in 16 starts covering 84.1 IP, with 111 Ks, 36 walks and 11 homers, facing 368 batters. He ended the 2026 season on a down note, giving up nine runs in five innings to Troy in the Gainesville Regional. Florida was eliminated by Troy in the next game.

Baseball America has Peterson at #21 on their board. MLB Pipeline has Peterson at #14 on their board. Kiley McDaniel puts Peterson at #13 on his top 150 list. Keith Law’s rankings have Peterson at #8 on his board. Fangraphs has Peterson at #13 on their board. Baseball Prospectus does not have Peterson on their top 30 draft board.

In the most recent Baseball America mock draft, Carlos Collazo has Peterson going to the Rangers at #16. Jim Callis’s June 4 mock draft has Peterson going to the Diamondbacks at #15, but also mentions him in connection with several teams ahead of Arizona. Keith Law’s May mock draft has Peterson going to the Cardinals at #13. Kiley McDaniel’s May 29 mock draft has Peterson going to the Rockies at #10.

I decided to start the MLB Draft preview write-ups with Peterson, since he was who BA has going to the Rangers in the mock draft they released today. The current mocks have him generally off the board before the Rangers pick, so at this point it would be mildly surprising if he dropped to them, but a lot can happen between now and draft day, and things are always fluid once you get past the first handful of picks.

The Rangers hit a home run with the selection of Alejandro Rosario in the 5th round in 2023, whose results in college didn’t match his stuff, though Peterson has had much more success than Rosario did. Its the same idea, though, grabbing a guy with great stuff with the belief that you can refine things and get better results from him. In addition, the Rangers used premium picks in back to back years on Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker, two guys who were seen as being hit harder in college at times than they should have been, given their stuff. Getting Peterson at #16 would be a major coup if the organization could have the same sort of success with him that the organization did with Rosario.

Wow. Just wow. Just last night I talked about the perils of falling in love with walk-off victories. Not that I think the Cubs were sitting back and waiting and thinking that they could just flip a switch at the last minute. And yet, the game played out that way anyway. Your mileage may vary, but this “shape” of game frustrates me more than say Friday’s loss. Oh, it’s embarrassing to lose 18-3, don’t get me wrong. But when the pitching is bad on this team, I kind of expect that. I’m not interested in exploring that thought just now. But that’s where my baseline is. But on a night like Sunday? A night when the bullpen gives the Cubs eight innings of relief with no runs allowed? That’s frustrating.

I know Javier Assad is a starter and I know he’s stretched out. So when I say “relief” outing, I see a few eyes rolling. But to be fair, Assad might have been told to be ready for a multi-inning outing Sunday. I’m sure that thought was maybe Javy would be called upon to throw two or three innings to bridge the gap between an underachieving starting rotation and an overworked bullpen resulting from those short comings. But he surely wasn’t guaranteed to get those innings tonight. Jacob Webb and Daniel Palencia both threw in this game and surely would have been available if (say) Jameson Taillon had gotten deep in the game. If Jameson gives them six innings and leaves say a 5-2 game, does Assad even pitch? So it’s not like he was sitting there ready to go. No one expected to see him in a competitive second inning.

But there was Assad on no notice, Webb for a couple of batters and Palencia for the ninth inning. All of that before Trent Thornton’s rough 10th inning in a tough spot. But I give Thornton credit. I will always think the reliever did a decent job if he holds the team to a single run in the top half of an extra inning. The whole setup is turbo charged, designed for run scoring. It’s superior if they hold a team scoreless and a disaster if they allow two or more. Again, your mileage may vary. So I don’t hold this against Thornton in any way. I do think differently about the bottom of the inning, particularly after you get a run in the top of the inning. It changes the way the inning plays once you have that lead. The pressure alone helps the road team once they get that run.

So my ire here is where it largely is with this team. These hitters have lost their way. It’s so bizarre. I’ve gotten to the point where I pretty much only want to see Pete Crow-Armstrong, Michael Busch and Ian Happ bat. I will give a nod to Moisés Ballesteros for a really great plate appearance tonight and the only run driven in. But that performance like so many of his teammates has been so few and far between for the last month. In this one, that was compounded by a couple of questionable baserunning decisions. A team shouldn’t slump for a whole month. Nico Hoerner. Alex Bregman. Seiya Suzuki. To differing degrees, these guys have track records. I don’t even know what you do with this.

I mean that’s not entirely true. The real answer is that you look yourself in the mirror. I’m not a big fan of ultimatums. I don’t think you go fire and brimstone from the front office. You just do your job. I know combing the back fields is quite the way amateur scouting goes anymore. At least not to the extent that it once did. But whatever amateur scouting looks like, whatever minor league scouting looks like, whatever international scouting looks like, you turn your attention there. It’s not over, but this team is heading towards lost cause. You start doing your homework on how to make this team better in 2027 and beyond. There’s no magic button that is going to fix this. Either these hitters are going to come back to life and find the magic they had earlier, or you are going to drift into oblivion.

The efforts are best served looking to the future. Not that an organization can’t “walk and chew gum at the same time.” But, I’m certain the tenor of phone calls and planting seeds is different when you are looking to add bodies than when you are looking to subtract them. Certainly if you think that another Edward Cabrera-type addition could add for 2026 and into the future, incremental help could help this year. The draft isn’t valuable enough to reward tanking in baseball. So I don’t think you go full youth movement or anything. But I do think you maybe at least start signaling that certain veteran players might become available, say by visibly scouting high level prospects from contending organizations.

It makes me sick that we are here. But it is what it is. I realize the Giants also just took two out of four from the Brewers. But I think of it like a piece I wrote earlier in the week about getting shut down by an A’s pitcher making his second major league start. In both situations, on a one off basis, of course that can happen. But this team hasn’t won a series in a month. Getting to easier competition hasn’t helped. The Cubs won two games this week. One was a fluky ninth inning comeback and one was an individually heroic performance behind the most effective Cubs starter. The offense had three good games on the road last week and got three wins out of it. But it’s just not enough. Two of six at home this past week. Three of seven the week before against two division rivals. No wins the week before.

Not. Good. Enough. Not. Acceptable.

Three Positives:

• Javier Assad threw 6.1 innings of scoreless relief. He allowed a hit, a walk and hit a batter. Even in the era of occasional use of openers, that has to be one of the longest and most effective relief outings in Cub history.
• Moisés Ballesteros had a hit, a walk and an RBI in his three plate appearances. A very nice day at the plate for the rookie. Very encouraging as one of the guys who has struggled a lot over the last month.
• Ian Happ had a triple. The only extra base hit by the Cubs.

Game 66, June 7: Giants 2, Cubs 1 (34-32)

Reminder: Heroes and Goats are determined by WPA scores and are in no way subjective.

THREE HEROES:

• Superhero: Javier Assad (.456). 6.1 IP, 21 BF, H, BB, 0 ER, 5 K
• Hero: Moisés Ballesteros (.148). 1-2, BB, RBI
• Sidekick: Daniel Palencia (.134). IP, 3 BF, K

THREE GOATS:

• Billy Goat: Alex Bregman (-.545). 0-5, DP
• Goat: Michael Busch (-.202). 1-5, DP
• Kid: Carson Kelly (-.195). 1-4, R

WPA Play of the Game: Alex Bregman lined into a double play with runners on first and third and no outs in the eighth inning. With all due respect to the rest of the game, this is where the potential Cub win died. You can see that in the chart above. (.301).

Cubs Play of the Game: Michael Busch singles with no outs and a runner on first and the game tied in the eighth inning. After a throwing error, the runner Kevin Alcantara went first to third. (.181)

Cubs Player of the Game:

Game 65 Winner: Pete Crow-Armstrong received 237 out of 254 votes.

Rizzo Award Standings: (Top 5/Bottom 5)

The award is named for Anthony Rizzo, who finished first in this category three of the first four years it was in existence and four times overall. He also recorded the highest season total ever at +65.5. The point scale is three points for a Superhero down to negative three points for a Billy Goat.

• Michael Busch +20
• Ben Brown +11.5
• Pete Crow-Armstrong/Michael Conforto +10
• Carson Kelly/Ian Happ +8.5
• Ryan Rolison/Phil Maton/Jameson Taillon -8
• Caleb Thielbar -9
• Matt Shaw -10
• Dansby Swanson -11
• Seiya Suzuki -26.5

Up Next: An off day on Monday. On Tuesday, the Cubs start a three game series in Colorado. The Rockies aren’t as woeful as they’ve been recently, but they are 24-42 with a -99 run differential. That run differential points to an expected 24-42 win loss record. So, you could say that they are who they are. By OPS, the Rockies are 17th in MLB (Cubs still hanging in there at ninth). By ERA, the Rockies are 30th (Cubs are 19th). One might expect, looking at those numbers, that the teams would have a high scoring series. The Rockies are 12-19 at home (12-23 on the road).

Colin Rea (5-3, 4.59, 64.2 IP) makes his 11th start of the season. He’s allowed seven earned runs over his last three starts, covering 17.2 innings (3.56 ERA). 36-year-old righty Tomoyuki Sugano (5-4, 3.98, 63.1 IP) gets his 13th start of the year. He’s 3-2 with a 4.50 in five home starts this year.

Two or even three wins in Colorado isn’t going to reignite my excitement about this team. But again, tanking doesn’t have a ton of value in baseball, so might as well go win these games.

*Side notes, Javier Assad and Alex Bregman’s Sunday night performances appear to both be among biggest WPA values by Cub players this year (one positive, one negative). Additionally, Pete Crow-Armstrong’s game Saturday and Pete Crow-Armstrong’s game Thursday were all notable WPA games for the season. Look for a comment from me on Monday regarding where those performances stack up with others this year. Or in the case of the PCA Saturday heroics, how it fits in amongst performances in recent years (by WPA).

CANCELED: Toledo Mud Hens vs. Iowa Cubs

Inclement weather canceled the series finale between Toledo and Iowa. The Mud Hens take the series 4-1.

Coming Up Next: The Hens are at home next week against the St. Paul Saints, starting Tuesday at 7:05 p.m. ET.

Erie SeaWolves 6, Richmond Flying Squirrels 3 (box)

A four-run ninth carried Erie to victory on Sunday, as the SeaWolves tied the series with the Richmond Flying Squirrels at three games apiece.

The most impactful swing of the night came from Izaac Pacheco with two outs in the top of the ninth. Mitch White had just taken over for Seth Lonsway, and Pacheco took the first pitch he saw — a 96-mph fastball low in the zone — and crushed it for a two-run homer, giving Erie a 4-3 lead. Justice Bigbie was on base from a single before the pitching change.

Things didn’t get better for White. Andrew Jenkins singled, E.J. Exposito walked and Seth Stephenson drove both runners in with a double to the wall in left-center. 6-3, Seawolves.

Moises Rodriguez earned the win with a 1-2-3 bottom of the ninth. However, Rodriguez was also the reason Richmond took a late lead. He sailed a throw to first and watched it ricochet off the tarp and down the right field line. The runner ended up on third and scored on a sacrifice fly.

The rest of Erie’s pitching was sound. Max Alba gave 4 2/3 innings of two-run ball, striking out four. A solo home run in the first and a soft RBI single into left in the fourth were the only costly mistakes of the day for him. Tanner Kohlhepp took over for Alba in the fifth to get the final out and pitch through the sixth. Eric Silva went 1-2-3 in the seventh.

The SeaWolves didn’t have a ton of offense in the first eight frames. Exposito homered in the third to tie the game at 1-1, and Brett Callahan briefly tied the game again at two runs apiece in the eighth with an RBI. Bigbie and Stephenson both had two hits.

Liranzo: 0-4, 2 K

Exposito: 1-3, HR (8), 2 R, RBI, BB, K

Pacheco: 1-4, HR (9), R, 2 RBI, 2 K

Alba: 4.2 IP, 2 R, 2 ER, BB, 4 K

Coming Up Next: The SeaWolves are at home next week against the Akron RubberDucks, starting Tuesday at 6:05 p.m ET.

West Michigan Whitecaps 11, Dayton Dragons 3 (box)

Tarik Skubal day in West Michigan went about as well as it could have, with the Whitecaps winning 8-0 over the Dayton Dragons and the Tigers’ ace looking near-perfect.

Skubal gave up two hits over five scoreless innings and struck out six. He reportedly touched 99 mph and looked like the guy Tigers fans have come to adore over the past few years. For a more in-depth breakdown of Skubal’s start, check out this piece.

Jackson Strong stayed hot at the plate, giving West Michigan an early lead with a two-run homer in the first, and the Whitecaps never looked back.

Garrett Pennington singled in two more runners in the third, Ricardo Hurtado doubled in a pair in the fifth, and Woody Hadeen made it 7-0 in the sixth with an RBI double. A balk with Bryce Rainer at the plate gave the Whitecaps run No. 8 in the seventh.

Hadeen, Pennington and Bennett Lee had multi-hit days. Lee just recently joined the roster after coming down from Erie on Saturday.

Ryan Harvey, Luke Stofel and CJ Weins continued the shutout in relief of Skubal. Harvey struck out a pair in as many innings, and the other two worked around a combined three hits over the final two frames. Way to not mess it up, guys.

The Whitecaps win the series, 4-2.

Rainer: 0-3, R, BB

Strong: 1-5, HR (5), R, 2 RBI, 2 K

Pennington:2-5, 2B (15), R, 2 RBI

Skubal: 5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K

Coming Up Next: The Whitecaps are on the road against the Lake County Captains next week, starting Tuesday at 6:05 p.m. ET.

Lakeland Flying Tigers 5, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels 3 (box)

Lakeland was outhit by Fort Myers on Sunday, but the Flying Tigers prevailed over the Mighty Mussels, 5-3, to close the series out with a second win.

Six free passes on the day helped Lakeland score more often, and six scattered hits around the lineup did the trick. Javier Osorio gave the Flying Tigers an early 2-0 lead with a two-run single into left field in the second.

Beau Ankeney got a run back in the sixth with a solo home run after Fort Myers scored in the top of the inning.

Jesus Pinto and Edian Espinal answered a two-run eighth by the Mighty Mussels with as many runs in the bottom half; the former singling into center field for a run, and the latter driving in another with a sacrifice fly.

Charlie Christensen gave Lakeland four innings of one-hit ball while striking out eight, lowering his ERA to 1.38 on the year. The right-hander’s secondary stuff was sharp once again, racking up whiffs with cutters, sliders, and changeups. Joe Ruzicka gave up the first run on two hits and a walk, but he lasted two innings. Jan Carabello struck out four over 1 2/3 innings, but he also gave up a pair of runs on four hits. Jatnk Diaz got the final four outs of the game, working around just one hit.

Ankeney: 1-4, HR (5), R, RBI, K

Christensen: 4.0 IP, H, 0 R, 0 BB, 8 K

Coming Up Next: The Flying Tigers are on the road next week against the Clearwater Threshers, starting Tuesday at 6:40 p.m. ET.

Mike Burrows is the only Astros starter to make every turn in the rotation through the first 67 games of the season, but after another rough outing Sunday against the A’s, and with Hunter Brown due back later this month, Burrows’ spot in the rotation could be in jeopardy.

Burrows allowed five runs, four earned, over five innings in Sunday’s 5-0 loss to the Athletics. He has a 5.77 ERA through his first 13 starts with the Astros, who are 3-10 when he takes the mound. It’s hardly what the team envisioned when it acquired the right-hander in December.

The 26-year-old was the victim of the Crawford Boxes, poor defense, and a .378 opponent BABIP through his first five starts, which led to his FIP being almost two runs lower than his 6.75 ERA. Burrows got his ERA down to 5.04 after throwing seven scoreless innings in Cincinnati on May 8, but he has posted a 6.91 ERA in his last five starts, to go with a 7.50 FIP and .289 BABIP against, suggesting his underlying performance has actually been worse than his results during that stretch.

Keeping the ball in the ballpark has been Burrows’ biggest issue this season. He allowed two more home runs on Sunday, bringing his total to 17. Only Jameson Taillon has allowed more this season. Eleven of those homers have come against Burrows’ four-seam fastball, including both he allowed against the A’s on Sunday.

Burrows arrived in Houston with one of baseball’s best changeups, but his other pitches needed refining, most notably his four-seam fastball, which opponents batted .326 against last season with a .529 slugging percentage. That pitch has been worse this season.

After Sunday’s start, opponents are batting .315 against Burrows’ four-seam this season, with a .781 slugging percentage. Baseball Savant has assigned that pitch a -9 run value, the sixth-worst mark among 300 qualified pitchers.

The Astros acquired Burrows with the hope he could build on the 111 ERA+ he posted last season in his first taste of Major League action, and that he could be a “pillar” of their rotation for the next half decade. That possibility can’t be ruled out after just 13 starts, but the Astros are sure to be experiencing some buyer’s remorse at the moment.

Burrows will make his next turn in the Astros rotation this weekend in Kansas City, but things could get complicated after that. If all goes well Wednesday in Sugar Land, Hunter Brown will rejoin the Astros rotation next week. A stretch of 13 games in 13 days will allow the Astros to utilize a six-man rotation, but that won’t be the case when the calendar flips to July.

Brown, Spencer Arrighetti, and Tatsuya Imai are rotation locks, while Peter Lambert and Kai-Wei Teng are performing at a much higher level than Burrows. Teng could slot back to the bullpen where he was excellent at the start of the season, but would that be best for the team if Burrows continues to struggle over the next couple of weeks? Also, Cristian Javier could be back by that point as well.

He has pitched out of the bullpen before, but a trip down to Sugar Land could be more beneficial. It would allow him to work out some of his issues while keeping him on a starter’s routine. The Astros took a similar approach with Arrighetti at the start of the season, and he has since authored an All-Star-caliber first half.

Burrows has flashed the upside that appealed to the Astros over the winter, and there’s no reason to think he’s a lost cause at this point. But the Astros are just 4.5 games back of Seattle for first place in the AL West and three games back of Texas for the American League’s final wild-card spot. The 2026 season is not a lost cause despite a 30-37 record.

Every game matters, and the Astros cannot afford to keep running Burrows out there if better options are available.

Thirteen Years Ago

The Blue Jays and Rangers played 18 innings; best of all, the good guys won. I miss these kinds of games.

It was one of those games that felt like it would never end.

Early on, we scored three runs in the third inning. Edwin Encarnacion singled. Adam Lind walked, moving Edwin to second. Then Colby Rasmus hit a line drive to right-center field. Edwin ran home and scored easily. Lind also tried to score, but the relay throw from Jurickson Profar, the Rangers’ second baseman, was wide of home, so both Lind and Colby scored.

After that initial burst, we put up zeros for the next 14 innings.

Mark Buehrle started strong. Just a month earlier, he allowed a seven-run inning against the Rays, but his season turned around after that. In the five starts between then and this game, Mark posted a 3.38 ERA.

On this day, he pitched 7 innings, allowing 4 hits, 1 earned run (a Jeff Baker home run in the seventh), 2 walks, and 3 strikeouts, with 92 pitches thrown. He deserved a win for that outing.

Though I don’t remember much about Baker, he had a solid season at the plate, hitting .279/.360/.545 with 11 home runs. Despite playing 11 seasons, he only appeared in over 100 games once, with 104 for the Rockies in 2008.

Buehrle should have secured the win, but after Steve Delabar pitched a scoreless eighth, Casey Jansen gave up 2 runs in the ninth for his first blown save of the season. Since he finished with 34 saves and just 2 blown, we can give him a pass.

After that, our bullpen pitched nine scoreless innings. From the recap:

Dustin McGowan entered in extras for his first appearance since 2011, walking the leadoff batter. After getting a double-play ball that Mark DeRosa booted, a hit batter loaded the bases, but Dustin grabbed a strikeout to escape.

Juan Perez replaced him and allowed a medium fly to right, but Jose Bautista’s strong throw cut down the runner at the plate. Perez pitched 2 innings, giving up 1 hit, 1 walk, and recording 1 strikeout.

Neil Wagner followed, getting 2 outs to close the 12th.

Next up, Brett Cecil pitched a clean 12th with one strikeout.

Brad Lincoln then pitched four strong innings: he allowed 1 hit, walked 1, hit 2 batters, and struck out 3. I figured Gibby would stick with him until the game ended or his arm fell off. But instead…

Aaron Loup came in, gave up a hit and hit a batter, but escaped the 18th without allowing a run.

Brad Lincoln was terrific. Despite pitching four excellent innings, he was sent to the minors the next day. It felt unfair.

On the Rangers’ side:

• Yu Darvish threw 7 innings, giving up 2 earned and 1 unearned run. We had 6 hits against him.
• Neal Cotts went 1.1, allowing just a hit.
• Jason Frasor, a former Blue Jays reliever, went 1 inning, allowing a hit.
• Robbie Ross: 1.2, with a hit and a walk.
• Ross Wolf threw 6.2 innings, constantly working himself in and out of trouble. And then, in the 18th:

With one out, Maicer Izturis lined out, then Emilio Bonifacio singled—one of his 47 singles out of 57 hits that year. After Josh Thole popped out (he hit .175/.256/.242 that season, but pinch-hit for DeRosa in the 16th), Wolf threw wide on a pickoff, and Bonifacio took third. Rajai Davis then singled him home for the walk-off win.

From the recap:

Jays of the Day: Lincoln (.570 WPA), Perez (.499), Buehrle (.297), Cecil (.143), Loup (.143 and the win), Wagner (.142), Davis (.223) and Rasmus (.141).

Suckage: Janssen (-.280), Izturis (-.367), DeRosa (-.183, plus the error), Thole (-.132)

Three guys had the number for possible Suckage Awards, but I’m not giving them out: McGowan (-.213), though the error was DeRosa’s fault; Bautista (-.155), but his throw from right redeemed him; and Bonifacio (-.147), but he drew the wild pickoff and scored the winner.

Home sweet home. After going .500 on their six-game road trip, the O’s return to Baltimore, where their most recent homestand resulted in a 7-3 record and some of their most inspired baseball of the season. This time it’s going to be a tougher task, with all seven games coming against winning teams, starting with the AL West-leading Mariners.

The M’s have been red hot of late. They were four games under .500 as recently as May 24, but then they rattled off an eight-game winning streak to take control of their underwhelming division. They were the preseason favorites to win the West and, after a sluggish start, they’re now on track to do so.

The Mariners always seem to have a quality pitching staff, and this season is no exception. Seattle’s 3.50 team ERA is second only to the Yankees among American League teams. That includes their usual stable of quality starters as we’ll discuss below, but their bullpen has been particularly effective with a 3.15 mark that leads the AL. That’s even despite a rocky performance from All-Star closer Andrés Muñoz, who has given up 15 runs in 23.1 innings and has blown five of his 14 save opportunities. The latest one came just yesterday, when Muñoz coughed up two runs in a walkoff loss in Detroit.

But the crew setting up Muñoz has been stellar. Right-hander Matt Brash has allowed only one earned run in 16 innings. Offseason acquisition Jose A. Ferrer — the A is for Awesome, I guess — has a 1.55 mark in 32 games, teaming with Gabe Speier (2.16) to form a potent lefty duo. And former O’s washout Eduard Bazardo, who made three terrible appearances with the Birds in 2023, is now one of Seattle’s most reliable relievers. Go figure.

On offense, the Mariners have been steady but unspectacular. They were surely expecting more from Cal Raleigh, last year’s 60-homer-hitting AL MVP runner-up. Raleigh has a miserable .560 OPS this season and is currently on the injured list with a right oblique strain. The M’s also haven’t gotten much from first baseman Josh Naylor (.682 OPS), whom they re-signed to a five-year, $92.5 million extension this past offseason.

But the Mariners’ outfield has picked up the slack. Luke Raley and Julio Rodríguez lead the team with 13 homers apiece, and Randy Arozarena leads all M’s position players with a 2.6 WAR. Designated hitter Dominic Canzone (144 OPS+) and shortstop J.P. Crawford (10 homers) have also been big contributors offensively. The Mariners also called up top prospect Colt Emerson to play third base, and he’s performed well so far. The Mariners’ lineup skews very left-handed, with all of their regulars except Rodríguez and Arozarena swinging from the left side. That could be a problem for the Orioles, who have three right-handed pitchers starting in this series.

Game 1: Monday, 6:35 PM, MASN

RHP Emerson Hancock (4-2, 2.80) vs. TBD

The Mariners’ rotation features five above-average, homegrown hurlers under the age of 30. Not gonna lie, I’m a little jealous. They’ll start the series with Hancock, who’s been the best of them all so far. The 27-year-old, who’d had only middling results in three seasons since debuting in 2023, has put it all together in 2026. In addition to his impressive ERA, he’s carrying a sub-1.00 WHIP and is striking out a batter per inning. Hancock faced the Orioles once last season, holding them to one run in 5.2 innings, with an Adley Rutschman dinger his only blemish.

As of this writing, the Orioles still don’t have a starter listed for the opening game. It’s Chris Bassitt’s turn, but he left his last outing early with lower back tightness and his status for tonight is unclear. If Bassitt can’t go, the O’s presumably will call up Trey Gibson, who last started June 3 for Triple-A Norfolk and would be on regular rest.

Game 2: Tuesday, 6:35 PM, MASN

RHP Logan Gilbert (4-4, 3.79) vs. LHP Trevor Rogers (3-6, 6.29)

At 29, Gilbert is the graybeard of the Mariners’ rotation (not counting veteran Luis Castillo, who’s been moved to long relief). The 2024 All-Star is continuing to limit walks and rack up strikeouts, though he’s among the lowest percentile of pitchers for hard-hit %, barrel %, and average exit velocity, so batters have been squaring him up a decent amount. The O’s offense will need to be aggressive and attack pitches in the zone. The only Orioles who have faced Gilbert frequently are his former AL West opponents Taylor Ward and Leody Taveras. Ward is 6-for-22 with a homer against him, while Taveras is just 2-for-17, but both hits are home runs.

Meanwhile, Rogers might be creeping his way back to being a solid pitcher, if not his dynamite 2025 self. In each of his last two starts, he’s begun the game with 5+ scoreless innings, only to hit the wall and lose effectiveness around the 70-pitch mark. It’s progress, for sure. This is a good matchup for Rogers, as the lefty-heavy Mariners are batting just .209/.290/.336 against southpaws this year.

Game 3: Wednesday, 6:35 PM, MASN

RHP George Kirby (5-5, 4.04) vs. RHP Brandon Young (4-1, 3.47)

Could Brandon Young be the first successful Mike Elias-signed and developed Orioles pitcher? It’s shaping up that way. The 27-year-old has rattled off three straight quality starts and now has the best ERA of any Orioles starter. Young has been a huge boost to an O’s rotation that’s been wracked by injuries, and his spot seems more than secure right now. This will be his first career start against Seattle.

Kirby, a former first round pick, began his career with three strong seasons from 2022-24 before slipping a bit last year. This season he hasn’t quite returned to form, with a career-worst K/9 of 7.4 and the highest WHIP and H/9 rate of his career. Still, that could just be small-sample-size noise. For whatever reason, he’s seen the Orioles a lot; his eight career starts against them are his most against any non-division opponent, though he’s just 2-5 with a 3.26 ERA. Ward, the former Angel, has tagged Kirby for three career homers.

Game 4: Thursday, 7:05, ESPN

RHP Bryan Woo (5-4, 3.74) vs. RHP Kyle Bradish (3-7, 3.89)

Bradish seemed to have reclaimed his ace status after a stellar May, but he got roughed up by the Blue Jays in his first start of June. Hopefully it was just a one-off. Overall he’s pitching with the same kind of stuff and swagger that he displayed in his great 2023 season, looking fully recovered from the Tommy John surgery he underwent in 2024. Bradish will need to be careful with Arozarena, who has homered twice against him in his career.

Woo, 26, is the youngest Mariners starter and the one coming off the best 2025 season, when he was an All-Star and finished fifth in the AL Cy Young vote after posting a 2.94 ERA in 30 starts. Woo worked six or more innings in his first 25 starts of that year, which seems like a herculean task in this day and age of baseball. He hasn’t quite matched that durability this year, already with three starts in which he failed to last six innings. Woo has had four outings of six or more shutout innings, but also four outings in which he allowed four or more runs, including his most recent start in Detroit. This might be a good time to give Taylor Ward a day off; he’s 0-for-13 with five strikeouts lifetime against Woo.

How many games do you think the Orioles will win in this series, Camden Chatters? Let us know in the comments.

Worcester: W, 5-3 (BOX SCORE)

If Triple-A baseball borrowed hockey’s “three stars of the game”, the WooSox’s pick for first star in the finale against Buffalo (Blue Jays AAA) would be easy. They had two extra-base hits; both came from lead-off guy Braiden Ward, and one of those doubles drove Tsung-Che Cheng in to make it a 5-2 ball game. The bullpen was then pretty nails following Michael Sansone’s five innings of work where he allowed just two runs. Worcester now has four consecutive wins.

It’s pretty clear that Ward, the return for Brennan Bernardino, sees the ball well more often than not and is a strong backstop for the depth of the outfield in the minor league organization, and while primarily an outfielder, he’s also logged time at second base since being drafted by the Rockies in 2021. Ward finished off that series with a .522 slugging percentage in the month so far and his OBP is nearing .400 on the season. He’s a step below the rest of the outfield options currently in Boston for sure, but the last person trusted with the distinction of Worcester’s regularly leadoff guy (Nick Sogard) ended up on the Major League roster before his new stint on the injured list.

Now, while we’re discussing trends Worcester buys into… anyone care to explain this e-mail I got from them?

Portland: W, 3-1 (BOX SCORE)

Gage Ziehl, who started his 2026 campaign in a rough spot, again looked awesome after initially giving up a run in the first, going five scoreless after that giving the Sea Dogs a really good chance to put Hartford (Rockies AA) away with his six total innings of one-run, eight strikeout ball. The offense wasn’t too pretty, as, through seven, the Sea Dogs were clinging on to a 2-1 lead. It was then that Franklin Arias’ team OPS crown, which was thought to be untouchable as he ran through May with it hovering around 1.3, was relinquished when Brooks Brannon had a solo shot over the “Maine Monster” in left in the eighth inning, and that sealed it for Portland. Oh, silly me, I’m forgetting the important part. That mammoth ball travelled 464 feet with an exit velocity of 115 miles per hour. Brannon, ironically enough, is pictured above with David Sandlin, who we know as the prospect in “fine, damn, here’s a prospect too, just get Jordan Hicks off of this baseball team” trade, in which the Sox acquired Ziehl. He now has nine home runs on the season. Here that absolute rocket is.

Look, I’m going to be honest: amidst people wondering why the 20-year-old Arias isn’t getting a call up to Triple-A, I’m actually pretty confounded on why Brannon, who plays first as well as catcher, isn’t getting a shot at playing first base in Worcester. (Brannon has been DH’ing the majority of games this season as Ronald Rosario and Johanfran Garcia have been splitting time on the bump.) I’m a Matt Lloyd fan, sure, but the upside is limited there. Brannon is 22, has a few years in the minors now having been drafted in 2022, put on 25 pounds over the winter and has really established his power tool in the process. Now that his OPS has eclipsed 1.000, time to make the call.

Greenville: Cancelled, Rain

The finale with Rome (Braves High-A) is scrapped entirely.

Salem: L, 9-11 (F/11) (BOX SCORE)

The finale in Wilson (Brewers A) was over almost before it began as Salem ends the series having won just 1 of 6. Any night you commit four defensive errors, you don’t stand a good chance at winning, but the offense kept up with the defensive shortcomings. Shortstop Avinson Pinto celebrated his 19th birthday (it was on May 29th…. close enough) with a triple and a home run. Unfortunately, though, the triple and Kleyvar Salazar’s grand slam happened in the midst of Salem being scored on in four consecutive innings; the game was 11-5 at its worst and even the 4-spot from Salazar couldn’t draw the game any closer than a two-run deficit. It’s nice, though, to see catchers slugging up and down the organization.

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Gavin Williams has pitched lights out this season, especially on home soil.

My Yankees vs. Guardians predictions and MLB picks expect more of the same from him against an Aaron Judge-less New York lineup. 

Who will win Yankees vs Guardians today: Guardians moneyline (-125)

Gavin Williams and Will Warren have similar counting stats, but the underlyings indicate the Cleveland Guardians have an edge on the mound.

Williams enters in great form, sporting a 2.80 xFIP, 27.2 K%, and 3.2 BB% over the last 30 days. He's played his best at home, where he has allowed more than two runs only once through six starts.

New York Yankees starter Will Warren has shown some red flags of late, posting an xFIP (5.01) nearly double his ERA (2.78) the past 30 days. Back the Guardians to -135.

COVERS INTEL:Gavin Williams ranks in the 84th percentile or higher in chase rate, whiff rate, and strikeout rate.

Yankees vs Guardians Over/Under pick: Under 8 (-115)

The Yankees have predictably slowed down offensively without Aaron Judge in the lineup. They’ve scored 20 runs over five games, and were held to four or fewer in four of them.

Williams is allowing an average of just 1.70 runs per start in Cleveland, so this is not a spot we should see a spike.

While Warren is not pitching as well as Williams right now, the Guardians rank 29th in average and 26th in OPS vs. righties at home. They're not a team that should blow the doors off anyone. I'd play this to -130.

Yankees vs Guardians odds

• Moneyline: Yankees +105 | Guardians -125
• Run line: Yankees +1.5 (-200) | Guardians -1.5 (+165)
• Over/Under: Over 8 (-105) | Under 8 (-115)

Yankees vs Guardians trend

The Guardians have cashed the moneyline in 16 of their last 25 games for +6.6 units and a 21% ROI. Find more MLB betting trends for Yankees vs. Guardians.

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Paul Toboni and the Nationals front office must have been in a giving mood last night because they made all sorts of promotions. Several prospects, including some of the biggest names in the organization rose up the ranks. Eli Willits, Devin Fitz-Gerald and Ethan Petry were among the players to be promoted.

This is a monster day for the organization. Willits and Fitz-Gerald are two of the Nats top five prospects, and now they are moving up. Fitz-Gerald is headed to Double-A, while Willits takes his place in the High-A infield. None of these promotions were overly surprising, just all of them happening at once was a bit of a shock to the system.

The biggest promotion of the day was Eli Willits, the former number one overall pick. Willits got off to a slower start, but has picked it up in a huge way. After a monster series this week, Willits is now hitting .300 with a .918 OPS in Low-A. Of course, Willits also brings elite defense and base running to this quality offensive game. 

So far this season, Willits has been a slightly different hitter than expected. His 23.3% strikeout rate is a little bit higher than anticipated. However, he has shown more power than evaluators were expecting, especially this early in his career. Willits already has 6 homers and 14 extra base hits on the season. He is also one of just ten 18 year olds to have at least a 150 wRC+ at Low-A, with some impressive names on that list.

Having seen Willits, he just looks like such a safe bet to be at least a solid big leaguer, which is a crazy thing to say about an 18 year old. Everything he does on the field is so smooth and natural. He is an incredibly sure handed fielder, with just one error all season. Willits could probably play a quality big league shortstop tomorrow. He is also like the energizer bunny on the bases. The youngster is always looking to make plays, as shown by his 29 steals.

He will be in for a fun matchup to start his High-A career though. The Blue Rocks head to Greensboro, where an elite pitching prospect resides. Seth Hernandez was the 6th overall pick in last year’s draft and has established himself as an elite pitching prospect already. He absolutely tore through Low-A before his promotion. Now the two blue chip prospects will likely face off sometime this week.

Willits is the biggest name to be promoted in this spree, but there are plenty of other movements on the farm. Talk Nats was all over this, so a major shoutout to him. One promotion that was a long time coming was Ethan Petry’s move to Double-A. 

As a productive SEC hitter, it just felt like High-A was too easy for Petry. Now, he will be tested at the Double-A level. I will be looking to see if his contact rates stay strong. Petry was making in zone contact at an above average clip in High-A despite being known as a power over hit guy. If those contact skills translate to AA, he could be a potential top 100 prospect.

Speaking of top 100 prospects, Devin Fitz-Gerald got called up to Double-A as well. The timing on this one is intriguing because DFG was in the midst of a major slump. He just snapped an 0 for 22 skid in his most recent game. However, before this cold streak, Fitz-Gerald was one of the hottest bats in all of minor league baseball. There was a time last month where it felt like he was homering every game.

While Fitz-Gerald has cooled off, his season OPS is still above .900. That is highly impressive for a 20 year old who plays his home games in pitcher friendly park. There is also a chance that his slump may have actually led to his promotion. That home run frenzy may have led to some bad habits forming. By getting to a new level, Fitz-Gerald is going to have to focus on making contact rather than swinging for the fences on every swing.

Those home runs might have made Fitz-Gerald’s swing a little too big. He has a great ability to pull the ball in the air, which leads to homers, but DFG should not be trying to be a home run hitter. Fitz-Gerald is at his best when he is trying to hit line drives to right field and then swinging for the fences when he gets the right pitch. Once he remembers that he is a pure hitter with power and not a slugger, the results will come.

One other promotion I wanted to shout out is Jack Moroknek, who dominated in Low-A. He was a joy to talk to when I chatted to him for my story when I went down to Fredericksburg. Moroknek is a self aware guy, who knows he is not some mega prospect. He is just really happy to be playing professional baseball and being teammates with guys like Eli Willits. The 11th rounder still has a long way to go, but I am keeping my eye on him.

These are the only promotions we know for now, but there could be more coming. With Petry and Fitz-Gerald coming to Double-A, a Cayden Wallace promotion would make a lot of sense. Wallace is 24 and has been performing in Double-A. The Triple-A infield is crowded, but his versatility makes it easy to find him a spot in a lineup. Sam Petersen has also been hitting the ball well lately, but the AAA outfield is even more crowded.

This is a big day for the organization, especially with Willits being called up. After he was drafted, Eli Willits said his goal was to be in the big leagues by the time he is 20 years old. He will be 18 for all of this season, and has already made it to High-A. Willits is on track to be in the big leagues as a 20 year old, and could even get a cup of coffee as a teenager if he has a monster year next season.

While the big league team is making more noise than expected, the farm system is still a massive priority for the new regime. The farm has more depth than I can ever remember, and these promotions are a good example of that. In the past, a lot of players got promoted too quickly, with Seaver King being a good example. However, it is tough to say that any of these guys did not earn these promotions. I am excited to watch these guys perform at the next level and march to the big leagues.

It was a day of completing series for the minor league teams. How did the team’s youngsters do?

Rochester 7, Lehigh Valley 6

Part of a looming issue facing the big league team right now is depth. What if there was a major injury of some kind, particularly to the pitching staff? Is there someone there that you would feel good about bringing to the major leagues? While the pitching staff would be a problem, what about the outfield? We know that Gabriel Rincones would likely be the initial choice, but outside of that? Keaton Anthony (2-5, RBI)? Dylan Carlson (2-3, 2B, HR, 2 RBI)? Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.

Binghamton 4, Reading 2

Speaking of looming things, the trade deadline is coming. The team has a good amount of prospect capital playing in Reading right now, some of it performing quite well. Aroon Escobar (0-3, K) is one of those prospects that might attract attention, as is maybe Bryan Rincon (1-4) and Raylin Heredia (2-4, R, HR, 2 RBI). The pitching prospects? Maybe not so much.

Brooklyn 5, Jersey Shore 3

Pedro Leon (2-3, R, 3B, HR, 3 RBI) is an interesting player. Originally signed to give them some outfield depth at the major league level, he got hurt in spring training and has had to rehab and various parts of the minor leagues. Now in High-A, he’s been mashing the ball….but why isn’t he moving up the ladder? They have Dante Nori at Reading, which is who they’d like to get regular at bats at that level, but what about Lehigh Valley? Why not go there and see if he can be an option in centerfield there? Is Dylan Carlson too much to overcome? Do they like Leon enough to just let him hit the ball hard in Lakewood? I have questions.

Clearwater 11, St. Lucie 8

Nathan Humphreys, have a day. The young DH went 4-4 with two home runs and five RBI, leading the Threshers to victory. He wasn’t alone in the offensive explosion either. Juan Villavicencio and Jonathan Hogart each had three hits on the day, both hitting a home run. Sean Youngerman was pretty bad on the mound, allowing six runs in two innings, but when offenses are doing things like that, you can look past the mound struggles.

The Royals have spent much of the season looking like a team destined to sell at the trade deadline. At 27-39, they own one of the American League’s worst records and remain on pace for nearly 100 losses. The starting pitching staff is likely to be targeted by several contenders.

USA Today reporter Bob Nightengale wrote an early preview of the trade deadline, focused largely on Tigers pitching star Tarik Skubal. He reports that Royals pitcher Kris Bubic is drawing interest from the upstart Athletics. But he adds, theRoyals may not be ready to dump their roster despite their record.

The Kansas City Royals and Minnesota Twins, two more teams going nowhere, say they aren’t ready to sell considering the AL absolutely stinks, and they are somehow still alive in the wild-card race.

Despite all their struggles, the Royals are only 5.5 games out of a Wild Card spot, and a recent stretch of five wins in seven games has offered a glimpse of the club many expected to contend this year.

Bubic has been out since mid-May with elbow soreness and had a bullpen session this week, but has no timetable to return. The 28-year-old Northern California native was an All-Star last year, and had a 4.11 ERA in nine starts this year, his final year before he is eligible for free agency.

If the Royals decide to become sellers, Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha could also draw significant interest, although both are in the middle of multi-year contract extensions. Cole Ragans could be attractive if he can establish his health – he has also been since May and was shut down after he experienced discomfort in a rehab start. Relievers Matt Strahm, John Schreiber, and Alex Lange could also be targeted by teams needing bullpen help.

The Yankees flirted with leaving the weekend against the Red Sox winless, as they were tied 1-1 going into the bottom of the eighth and hadn’t taken advantage of an excellent day from Cam Schlittler. Thankfully the Bombers’ bats came alive at last, Cody Bellinger breaking the ice with a solo shot before a Trent Grisham RBI single and a three-run blast by Jazz Chisholm Jr. gave the Yanks some breathing room. Final score: 6-1 Yanks and an offense hopefully back on track.

Here’s what else was going on in American League action on Sunday, which included a key game that brought the Yanks back to the forefront of the AL East.

Tampa Bay Rays (37-25) 1, Miami Marlins (31-35) 4

The Fish really did the Yankees a solid over the weekend, as despite entering with a 29-34 record, they took two out of three from the first-place Rays. In fairness to Tampa Bay, Sunday was a tougher matchup with former Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara in control. He went seven strong innings, allowing one run on five hits and a walk, the lone score coming in the third when Yandy Díaz singled in Taylor Walls after the latter swiped second.

Griffin Jax isn’t a schmuck though, and for his part, the recently-converted reliever shut the Marlins down in five scoreless frames. With Garrett Cleavinger, however, the Fish fared better. Liam Hicks worked a one-out walk in the sixth and Otto Lopez tied the game with a triple that Cedric Mullins failed to cut off in center.

Kyle Stowers lifted a sacrifice fly to plate Lopez and the Marlins were in front.

Miami added insurance runs after a strike-’em-out/throw-’em-out double play that was part of a three-batter seventh for Sandy. Steven Matz entered for Tampa Bay, fresh off his return to the bullpen with the Rays abandoning their effort to make him a starter again. His first relief appearance didn’t go so hot either. The lefty walked Esteury Ruiz, allowed a stolen base, and then issued a free pass to Jakob Marsee. The duo executed a double steal, and the Rays brought the infield in. Joe Mack grounded to shortstop, but catcher Hunter Fedducia couldn’t handle the throw home. Both Ruiz and Marsee scored to make it 4-1, Miami.

Michael Petersen and Anthony Bender combined to allow a mere Jonathan Aranda single across the final two innings as the Marlins took the series. The Rays are now back in a virtual tie with the Yankees for first place in the AL East, technically percentage points ahead of them at 37-25 (.597) vs. 38-26 (.594), but they have played two fewer games than the Yanks. On the MLB.com standings page, they’re even in terms of games ahead/behind. Regardless, the Rays host the Red Sox for three at the Trop next while the Yanks go to Cleveland.

Other Games

Toronto Blue Jays (32-34) 6, Baltimore Orioles (31-35) 4: The Jays enjoyed beating Baltimore 6-4 so much on Saturday that they did the exact same thing yesterday. There was more drama to this one, as the O’s jumped out to a 4-0 lead with an ambush on Kevin Gausman, Colton Cowser and Taylor Ward both homering in the four-run fifth. An inning later, the Jays stormed back. Yohendrick Piñango led off with a homer against Shane Baz, and after a Jesús Sánchez double and an error by Gunnar Henderson, the floodgates opened. An RBI groundout, single, and double followed, the last an Andrés Giménez hit to tie the game at 4-4. Nathan Lukes then reached on an infield single that caromed off the mound, and the play was just so slow enough for Giménez to come all the way around to score. Brandon Valenzuela later homered off Rico Garcia for an insurance run and Louie Varland retired three batters in a row as the potential tying run to nail down the Jays win.

Seattle Mariners (34-32) 4, Detroit Tigers (27-39) 5: The brutal season for Andrés Muñoz continues. The two-time All-Star closer has been dreadful in 2026, and he blew another game on Sunday, dooming Seattle to a series loss at the hands of the Tigers. They’ve been playing better this past week, but Seattle had this one in hand. Run-scoring hits from Josh Naylor, Cole Young, and Randy Arozarena gave the M’s a 4-1 lead. It was trimmed to 4-3 due to an ineffective Cooper Criswell, and then Muñoz entered for the ninth. He issued consecutive walks with one out to Zach McKinstry and the man whose triple had already cut into Seattle’s lead, Wenceel Pérez. A soft grounder moved the runners over, and down to Detroit’s last out, rookie Kevin McGonigle came through with a two-run single to win it.

Cleveland Guardians (37-30) 0, Texas Rangers (32-33) 10: The Mariners’ loss was the Rangers’ gain, as the obliterated the Guardians to move to within a game and a half of Seattle in the underwhelming AL West race. (The A’s also won to move to within 2.5.) It was a nice atonement for Texas after a 6-0 loss on Saturday. Cleveland’s Joey Cantillo was obliterated to the tune of seven runs on nine hits, three of which came on homers to Josh Jung, Wyatt Langford, and Justin Foscue. Jacob deGrom threw six scoreless for the Rangers, yielding just three hits. The Guardians retained a two-game AL Central lead over the White Sox, who would be leading the AL West. Unfortunately for them, it is not 1983 or 1993.

Hickory starter Evan Siary allowed two runs in five innings, striking out four and walking one. Owen Proksch struck out two and walked one in two innings. Michael Trausch faced four batters, threw six strikes in 21 pitches, and allowed a hit, three walks and two runs.

Hector Osorio was 3 for 5 with a homer — his 13th of the year — and I wouldn’t be shocked if this was his last game at Hickory. Paulino Santana had a pair of doubles. Daniel Flames doubled. Josh Springer had a hit. Brayling more had a pinch hit single.

Hickory box score

Hub City starter D.J. McCarty struck out nine in 4.2 IP, allowing two runs, including a solo homer, and walking one. Case Matter threw 0.2 scoreless. Joey Danielson struck out two in a shutout inning.

Yeison Morrobel was 3 for 5 with a walk and a homer. Esteban Mejia was 3 for 4 with a homer and a stolen base. Maxton Martin had a hit.

Hub City box score

Frisco played a pair.

In Game One, Dylan MacLean gave up four runs in four innings, striking out two and allowing a pair of homers. Josh Trentadue walked one in a shutout inning. Wilian Bormie threw a scoreless inning.

Josh Smith began his rehab assignment, hit leadoff, playing second base, and was 2 for 3 with a homer and a walk. Rafe Perich homered. Dylan Dreiling had a hit and a pair of walks.

In Game Two, Bryan Magdaleno walked two and struck out one in a scoreless inning. Ryan Lobus threw 1.2 scoreless innings.

Josh Smith led off and DH’d in Game Two, going 0 for 1 with a walk before being lifted for a pinch hitter. Rafe Perich was 2 for 3 with a homer. Ian Moller homered.

Frisco Game One box score

Frisco Game Two box score

Round Rock starter David Davalillo was lifted after recording just two outs, likely because he was at 34 pitches for the inning, with an 11 pitch walk to Alek Thomas being his final batter. Thomas Ireland allowed two runs in three innings, striking out two and walking two. Gavin Collyer allowed a run in 1.1 IP, striking out one and walking one. Michael Otanez struck out one and walked one in 0.2 IP, allowing a run. Emiliano Teodo walked one and struck out one in a shutout inning.

Alejandro Osuna was 2 for 4. Cam Cauley and Blaine Crim each had a hit.

Round Rock box score

John Hudek’s start was something that only Hollywood could conjure up.     A year to the day from when he was in Toledo, Ohio and the Tigers dropped from the 40-man roster, he’d appear as an All-Star for the Houston Astros.    He was a model of perseverance.  He’s reliever John Hudek, and he’s our 23rd entry of our continuing Legends Series.    

Q:  You made your MLB debut with the Astros in April of 1994.  Three months later you were an All-Star.  What do you remember about that 1994 All Star Game?   

A:  In the game, first they told me to go and get loose.  So, I threw like five pitches and I was ready, I was so hyped up.  I honestly didn’t even know I was facing Cal Ripken Jr and I struck him out.   I just brought fastballs to him pretty much.   I was so locked in.     

My approach was always; it’s me against you, so I didn’t even pay attention to who I was facing.   Afterwards though, I was like oh my gosh!    I got Cal!    (laughs)     

Q:  That 1994 All-Star Game was also fun because at one point, you, Doug Drabek, Biggio, Bagwell and Caminiti were all on the field together. What was it like having so many teammates on the All-Star team?  

A:  Back then having five in the All-Star Game was a big deal.  It was such an incredible experience.   

You’ll remember that was the year that Bagwell was hitting everything.    It didn’t matter if there were no outs, or two outs, he was getting guys who were on base in.    The thing about that group of five, is that we all earned the right.    

Drabek had won the Cy Young with Pittsburgh earlier so going back and playing that night was awesome.   

Q:  Of the 194 games that you appeared in, what was the most memorable for you?

A:  I had situations that were cool.    My first official save was incredible.   Sometimes what I remember is just the friendships.  

One time, I gave up a bomb and Bagwell is out there and he’s taking forever to come in and I’m like, “let’s go” and he’s like I can’t, I’m waiting for that ball to come down that you threw (laughs).   That thing went all the way up on the tarps in Miami but that’s how we would bring each other down to earth.    Stuff would happen every outing, but every save was special and of course that All-Star Game was big.    

In one my career official at bat, I actually got a hit and drove in a pair of runs!    

Q:  How close a group was that 1994 team?

A:  I played with Derek Bell in High School.   Gonzo was also there, Dave Magadan was from there, so all of those guys and then you had so many great players thrown into the mix, it was a special group and time.   Those guys didn’t have any attitudes; they just played hard and had fun.